Carrier - for Bottles and Such

ABSTRACT

The device according to the present invention is primarily meant for carrying and storing bottles (e.g. wine bottles etc) and cans. The common irritating phenomena of rattling and unstable bottles during transport are eliminated. This is achieved by carrying the bottles lying down in a (more or less) horizontal position, firmly packed against each other by the force of gravity and the enclosing straps. The device furthermore has preferably one compartment per bottle. The force of the bottles against each other, with the carrying handles extended as to function as straps/bands that enwrap all the bottles, holds the bottles firmly in place when carried. The opening of the device is closable, by means of a top lid or other closure. This makes sure that the bottles cannot fall out, even if their force against one another disappears, as when they are no longer carried, but placed in a car trunk or so. The device is superior to the prior art for bringing home full bottles of wine etc, as well as for storing empty bottles and bringing them to their place of disposal.

CITATIONS

U.S. Pat. No. 4,428,484, D441,612

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is in the field devices for carrying and storing.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Most any bag may be used for carrying bottles. And there are prior artcarriers specifically meant for carrying bottles. One such carrier hasseveral compartments. The bottles are carried standing upright, onebottle per compartment. Such prior art carriers are made from metal,plastic, basketwork, cloth etc. Especially, one forerunner of thepresent invention, by the same inventor as the present invention, hasbeen marketed in Europe by one of the present inventors under the nameEcoPac. Here the bottles are also carried lying down and packed againsteach other. But there is no top or lid or tightening device. So in thisprior art device there is a possibility that the bottles may escape fromthe bag when they are not meant to, e.g. when the device no longer iscarried but put on the car floor, seat or baggage compartment etc. Theforces of gravity and the enwrapping handle no longer hold the bottlesin place when the device is put aside, which is a drawback, especiallyduring transport in a car etc. Thus the present invention has a majorpractical advantage over its forerunner.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION & DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention is a bag-type device meant for carrying bottles.There is preferably one compartment per bottle. The bag with itscompartments may be sewn from cloth. There is a pair of handles forcarrying the carrier. The handle straps may be sewn from ribbons/bandsof more sturdy cloth. They extend more or less perpendicularly from thelengthwise direction of the bottle compartments, and preferably allaround the carrier. The bottles are preferably to be inserted in thecompartments when the carrier is in standing position with the openingsof the compartment pointing upwards, so that placing the bottle in thecarrier is similar to placing a bottle on a table standing up. When thebottle carrier is carried, its handles are gripped, so that the bottlesare tipped and turned about 90 degrees to a horizontal or nearlyhorizontal position. The weight of the upper bottles on the lower onesand on the encompassing handle straps fix the bottles tightly and firmlyagainst one another when the carrier is carried, so that the bottlesstay fixed in the carrier, with all the weight placed directly on thehandle straps, rather than rattling and leaning back and forth asbottles do when carried upright as in many prior art carriers.

The present invention furthermore is closable, so that bottles will notfall out even when the pressure from the carrying bands is not present,i.e. when the bag is not carried by the carrying bands. This can beachieved by means of a top lid equipped with a zipper, Velcro or such,or by any appropriate securing device. The closing of the bag can alsobe achieved by tightening the bag with an appropriate device, either atthe very top, or further down, but preferably not further don thanaround the bottle necks. Such a closable top has several majoradvantages:

A) Even if the carrier is put down to rest with the bottles lying down,they cannot escape from the carrier. This can occur in the no-top priorart model, when the enclosing handle straps are no longer stretched bythe weight of the bottles. This has at times lead to breaking bottles inthe prior art. Putting the carrier device of the present invention withthe closable top down in tipped position with horizontal bottles (ratherthan standing bottles) is at times desirable, especially whentransporting it in a car, train, etc.

And although the prior art version, in spite of its drawback of beingopen with no top, was still very practical in many ways, some potentialcustomers have expressed doubt that it will retain the bottle even whencarried. B) The present closable top put such worries at bay, increasingconsumer confidence in the product. C) And last but not least, theclosable top provides a new surface well suited for a commercial messagesuch as logo, visible from the position of facing the person carryingthe present invention.

The invention makes it easier and more comfortable to carry bottles thanany prior art method. In a bag or any other prior art carrier, thebottles are not steadily fixed, but can sway hither and thither, andrattle against each other. When placing for instance a plastic bag witha couple of wine bottles on a table, care must be taken so that thebottles remain standing. And when such a bag is lifted, the bottlesrattle and become displaced. When carrying bottles in a box of the kindbottles are shipped in commercially, two hands must be used, and theback must be bent slightly backwards, which may cause a bad back ache .The present invention is easily placed on, and lifted from a surface andcarried, without any such problems.

There is furthermore prior art devices made from cloth with individualcompartments, for bottles but where the bottles are carried standing up.This type of carrier is much less stable, because the weight of thebottles is placed not directly on the handle straps, but at the bottomon the fabric of the bag , causing the bag to sag. Here, gravity doesnot to work to pack the bottles tightly together. Thus, standingupright, the bottles can sway and rattle. In the present invention,gravity packs the bottles together tightly and firmly when carried.There are no more problems of bottles swaying, rattling, falling overand even breaking, or sagging bags and feelings of unsteadiness. Thepresent invention carries wine bottles lying down snugly, pressedrock-steady against one another by the force of gravity, making it mucheasier to carry bottles. The advantage is clearly perceived by theperson carrying the wine bag. More bottles can be carried, and withgreater ease.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has thebottles lying down flat, more or less perpendicular to the arm of thecarrying person, the spirit of present invention is present in anydevice where the force of gravity is employed to make the bottlessupport each other when carried—this can be achieved, to some extent, bytilting the bottle less than 90 degrees from their upright position. Itcan also be achieved by a bag where the opening is on the long side ofthe bag, without or without individual compartments for bottles.

The goal of retaining the bottles inside the device can be achieved notonly by a full top cover. The device can also be tightened around thebottles by other means. For example, a sewn-in (or sewn-on in loops)string similar to the tightening device of a lockable tightening stringoften seen in a carrying bags for sleeping bags etc can be employed.This string can be sewn in at the very top of the carrying device of thepresent invention, but also somewhat further down, preferably so that ittightens around the necks of the bottles. It can also be positioned inloops on the carrying band (FIG. 1.1) that is closest to the bottlenecks.

Instead of a string, elastic can be used. This can also be placed at thevery top, or somewhat further down.

Another way to force the bottles to stay in the device is to utilize thehandles, i.e. the carrying bands nearest to the bottle necks (FIG. 1.1),as a bottle retaining device. The handle strap bands shall then be madelockable by a locking device such as a clasp, buckle, or such,preferably in different positions, depending on the amount of bottles inthe bag, so that bands can be tightened around the bottle necks, forcingthe bottles to stay in the carrying device. The bands are thenpreferably not sewn on all the way around the device, but are let freeat a suitable position a certain distance on the sides of the carryingdevice, and then led to run in at least one loop each, positionedpreferably on or near the corners of device that are nearest to thecarrying hand. Thus the bands can be tightened around preferably anyamount of bottles, but still stay in position, thanks to the loops.

One embodiment of the present invention holds up to nine (1-9) winebottles in perfect order. The advantages of the present invention areeasily appreciated, should one try to place nine wine bottles in anyother kind of bag or carrier. In prior art devices problems ofdisplacement, balance and possibly even breaking bottles areencountered. And the advantages of the present invention are equallyobvious when comparing the ease with which the carrying devices can beplaced on a surface without problems occurring.

In a basic embodiment, the bands of the handle straps are sewn onto thecloth of the compartment bag. Since the cloth is well suited forprinting or embroidering, but the handle band often it is not, the bandlimits the space suitable for printing or embroidering.

The present invention can also be utilized for the following newmethods:

-   -   The method of carrying bottles or cans in a preferably soft bag        such as the device of the present invention described above, in        which the bottles or (cans) are placed in individual        compartments, where the device can be closed with a lid or top        and where the bottles are carried lying down more or less        horizontally, including the method of providing such a bag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1

-   -   1. Handles/carrying bands from textile material, encompassing        three sides of the bag.    -   2. Zipper with grip    -   3. Closable top/lid    -   4. Grip for raising bag with bottles to vertical standing        position from horizontal carrying position    -   5. Compartments for individual bottles    -   6. Grip “tongue” to facilitate opening and closing of zipper.        For 1-4 corners, only one corner shown.    -   7. Compartment walls, preferably from textile material    -   8. Suitable place for logotype or other commercial message

FIG. 2

-   -   1-8: see FIG. 1    -   9. Bottles, one in each compartment (5).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Not applicable, the invention is simple and is described in the briefdescription

1. A carrying device, meant primarily for bottles, but also for otherarticles such as cans having preferably one compartment per bottle to becarried—being made from preferably a soft fabric e.g. textile cloth orplastic cloth Characterized by the carrying straps/handles positioned sothat the bottles are lying down more or less horizontally when carried,i.e. that the handle straps (FIG. 1.1.) are positioned more or lessperpendicularly in relation to the lengthwise extension of the bottles,or at least non-parallel to the lengthwise direction of the bottles, tothe extant that the force of gravity will bring the tilted/leaningbottles together in mutual support when the device is carried,preferably with the handle straps extending like supporting bands allthe way around the device except on the top side, over which the handlesmeet when the device is carried, so that the weight of each bottle istaken up directly by said handle straps, rather than being transformedto them from cloth or other material of which the bag is sewn, thusreducing the weight on the cloth or other material, with the open end ofthe bag having a closable top, e.g. a flap being closable by zipper,Velcro, snap fasteners or other closing device, or other top closing ortightening technology, including the tightening device of a lockabletightening string similar to strings often seen in a carrying bags forsleeping bags etc.) or an elastic band in any suitable positiontightening the bag, preferably above or around the necks of the bottles,or utilizing the handles, i.e. the carrying bands nearest to the bottlenecks, as a bottle retaining device, with the handle strap bands thenbeing made lockable, preferably in different positions, adjustabledepending on the amount of bottles in the bag, so that said handle strapbands (FIG. 1.1.) are tight around the bottle necks, forcing the bottlesto stay in the device, or a belt-like strap, elastic or not, that can betightened around the full width of the bottles.
 2. A device according toclaim 1 where a larger printable side area is achieved by sewing thebag-enclosing part of the handle straps on the inside of the carrierfabric to a desired extent, where the straps can be led and fixed/sewnin and out of openings in the cloth from which the carrier is sewn, sothat a larger area of the cloth is left free for printing.
 3. The methodof carrying bottles (or cans) in a device according to claim 1, wherethe method of carrying the bottles includes the method of providing sucha device.
 4. The method of carrying bottles or cans comprising the stepsof providing and the steps of using a preferably soft bag in which thebottles or (cans) are placed in individual compartments, where thedevice can be closed with a lid or top and where the bottles are carriedlying down more or less horizontally.